Which is worse? Starbucks, or Ianto's wrath?
by Crouching SunRose
Summary: While Ianto is home sick, temporary Torchwood support apprentice Quinn is faced with a difficult decision.


**A/N This is a scene from an original fic I'm working on, which although initially inspired by the Torchwood 'verse, is going to be different enough that I'm going to try and get it polished enough for actual publication.**

 **However, since I've been sick and a bit out of it, I'm posting it here just for fun. Basic premise: Two people fall through the Rift - a fan, and John Barrowman. Both now work with Torchwood while waiting to find a way back home. As far as timelines, this is just following the Year the Never Was, while Jack is still off with the Doctor.**

Quinn struggled with the espresso machine. She'd just wanted to try it - although since she didn't even LIKE coffee, it was probably a bit pointless. She wouldn't be able to recognize a 'god-shot' if it jumped up and nipped her in the nose. But she really wanted to try.

Ianto was out sick - John was happily impersonating Jack and settled into his office, Gwen and Owen were down in the medibay - doing who knows what, and Tosh had been buried in her computer for so long she was starting to sprout wires or something. The one constant was that everyone wanted "coffee magic," and Quinn was the only one willing even to try.

It wasn't going well. All the youtube videos were pretty easy to follow - if the machine was already set up to brew. It wasn't. There was a boiler, somewhere. She didn't even know if it was auto-refill, if there was a reservoir she could remove or refill, or if she'd have to depressurize the boiler to refill it with water.

And if she HAD to depressurize it, she wasn't even sure how to go about it.

There was no steam. The power was off - and she didn't know if it would be safe to turn it on, because she couldn't figure out how to tell if there was water or not. And no matter how caffeine-starved everyone was, she'd rather they kill her, than have Ianto do it after finding out she'd cooked the element without it being properly submerged.

She'd done that once in college, with a hot pot. She still remembered the brilliant flashes of light from the wiring in the base shorting out inside it's plastic covering the next time she used it. This was a vintage machine, and Ianto's baby. Well, maybe it wasn't Ianto's baby, but she'd rather not find out what he'd do to someone who damaged it.

"Why isn't there a water window or something?"

"What's a water window?"

John had come in while Quinn was fully absorbed.

"I KNOW if I knew it was full, I could do this."

John grinned.

"It's just coffee, why not go pick some up from starbucks?"

Quinn rolled her eyes at him.

"What?"

"You've been ruined by instant, John. You and me, we're American. Starbucks is the luxury goods. You still like Hershey's candy bars."

He was unwrapping one at the moment.

"What's wrong with Hersheys?"

Quinn laughed.

"Go ask Gwen, or Tosh, or Owen. Point is, standards are higher over here."

"I don't see them trying to operate this thing."

"No, you wouldn't. Don't you remember when Owen died and got stuck as the coffee boy for a while?"

"Sort of - I wasn't in that scene, was I?"

"You weren't in that scene! You read the F***ing script, John, why don't you remember anything that isn't all about you?"

"Hey, not my fault here!"

Quinn sighed.

"I know, I know. To you, Jack Harkness was a job, a role. A career launcher, even. Not one character in a bigger story."

"We all can't all be writers, Quinn. I did my job, and I did the best i could."

She sighed.

"I know. I just… I wish I could be good at mine."

John stared at her.

"You wish you could be… Quinn, you're great at your job! The filing, the papers, the cleaning, the… I don't even know what all you do. But coffee? This isn't your job, it's Ianto's."

"But, I'm the general support apprentice. I'm supposed to make sure everything goes smoothly."

John reached his hand around her waist - VERY careful not to go any lower, he did NOT need that to happen again.

"You've never been trained for it - that's not your fault. Come on, Quinn. Which is worse? They have to put up with Starbucks for one day? Or Ianto's wrath when he finds out someone's been playing with his toys?"

Reluctantly, Quinn allowed herself to be led away from the espresso machine that she so desperately wanted to try to figure out.

John flashed Jack's trademarked smile at her.

"Come on, let's go to Starbucks. I think they'll live, don't you?"


End file.
